The Cleveland zoo is suing the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium for trademark infringement, claiming the Pittsburgh zoo’s upcoming Asian Lantern Festival is a ripoff of the Cleveland zoo’s annual event in place since 2018.

Cleveland Metroparks alleged in the federal lawsuit filed last week that the zoo has held an annual light show called the Asian Lantern Festival for the past three years, and attendees include those from the Western Pennsylvania and Youngstown regions.

The lawsuit alleges that staff from the Pittsburgh zoo visited the lantern festival in Cleveland in 2020 to “determine whether Pittsburgh Zoo would like to host a light show of its own.” Pittsburgh zoo officials contracted with the same company, Tianyu Arts and Culture, to present a light show in Pittsburgh.

The show is currently scheduled for certain days from Aug. 14 through Oct. 30, according to the Pittsburgh zoo’s website. It is billed as the Asian Lantern Festival and referred to as “a bold new adventure” for the zoo.

“At no time,” according to the lawsuit, “did Cleveland Metroparks authorize Pittsburgh zoo to use the Asian Lantern Festival mark.” It further claims that Pittsburgh began advertising its light show at the same time tickets for the Cleveland show opened ticket sales.

The lawsuit claims the Pittsburgh zoo’s advertisements are using photos from the Cleveland zoo’s lantern festival.

Cleveland zoo officials claim in the lawsuit they sent an email to Pittsburgh zoo management June 25, which they said went unanswered. That was followed up with a June 29 cease-and-desist letter, according to the lawsuit. Pittsburgh zoo officials, according to the filings, told their counterparts in Cleveland they would consider renaming the event in the future but made no promises.

The lawsuit alleges Pittsburgh’s use of the name Asian Lantern Festival is “likely to cause confusion, cause mistake and deceive consumers as to the source, origin, affiliation, connection or association of the Pittsburgh zoo’s light show.”

In its own filing, Pittsburgh zoo representatives called the lawsuit an “audacious attempt to claim intellectual property rights,” noting the phrase Asian Lantern Festival has been used to describe events and traditions that have existed “for over two millennia.”

The filing points to light shows with the phrase “Asian Lantern Festival” at zoos across the country: Louisville Zoo, the Central Florida Zoo and Botanical Gardens, and the Blank Park Zoo in Iowa. They also noted the St. Pete Asian Lantern Festival in St. Petersburg predated the Cleveland zoo event by a year.

Attorneys for the Pittsburgh zoo also claim the Cleveland zoo filed its federal trademark application — for “Asian Lantern Festival Cleveland Metroparks Zoo” — three days before filing the lawsuit on July 2. Cleveland attorneys note in the lawsuit they became aware of Pittsburgh’s event June 22.

The lawsuit claims the Cleveland Metropark Zoo will suffer losses because of Pittsburgh’s marketing of the event, noting that people from more than 100 Pennsylvania cities bought tickets to the Cleveland event. It claims about 8% of last year’s attendees live in Western Pennsylvania and Youngstown.

The Cleveland zoo is seeking payment of damages, attorneys fees, and other court costs – as well as for the Pittsburgh zoo to cease using the name and stop promotion of the event. In the meantime, Cleveland attorneys are also seeking a temporary restraining order to keep the Pittsburgh zoo from using the festival name while the case works its way through the courts.

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